I have some uncertainties regarding how to put my future living plans into effect after college. I'd like to receive advice from members of the forum, especially since my query pertains to Dhamma and a lifestyle suitable to practice.

I'm currently completing my undergrad studies in the US, and I'll be graduating at the end of this session with a B.A. in Linguistics I've been a practicing Buddhist for a little less than a year, and I've had some familiarity with the teachings for about 2 and 1/2 years. I want to ordain in the Theravada tradition, but I first have to pay off my student loans (~25k).

I like a fairly simple lifestyle, and have done so for close to a year. That being said, I feel like the place where I live does not contain a strong Theravada presence at all. My goal is to move to a place like California or Hawaii, where the overall Buddhist presence is much stronger. Once there, my goal is to find a good job and pay off my debts ASAP.

I'd like to receive some practical advice on the matter, as well as any recommendations on programs that I should look into. Thank you all for reading, and I appreciate your responses.

Metta,LG2V

Last edited by LG2V on Mon Sep 30, 2013 3:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

It's important to set priorities to everything. From your message, it seems like clearing your student loan takes the highest priority, which makes perfect sense. It's important to become debt-free first and then you can have the peace of mind to do anything you want, whether getting ordained or something else. You can start talking with folks at your college's career center. They'll help you with everything from mock interview, resume/cover letter preparation, to targeting the right position from their job database. Also register for auto job alerts from Monster, Indeed, Dice, etc. Right now there're good demands for Engineering and Comp. Sci. majors. I don't know if it's the same thing for Linguists majors. Else just be patient and continue to job hunt aggressively. All the best..

santa100 wrote:It's important to set priorities to everything. From your message, it seems like clearing your student loan takes the highest priority, which makes perfect sense. It's important to become debt-free first and then you can have the peace of mind to do anything you want, whether getting ordained or something else. You can start talking with folks at your college's career center. They'll help you with everything from mock interview, resume/cover letter preparation, to targeting the right position from their job database. Also register for auto job alerts from Monster, Indeed, Dice, etc. Right now there're good demands for Engineering and Comp. Sci. majors. I don't know if it's the same thing for Linguists majors. Else just be patient and continue to job hunt aggressively. All the best..

Thank you. I appreciate the good advice. I've been to my college career center once this year. I ought to go back again and do a more thorough job of preparing myself for a future career. I was wondering about developing more Comp Sci proficiency since its somewhat related to my major and I might be able to get a job involving Natural Language Processing or something of the like. Might this be a possibility?

Justsit wrote:Jobs in Hawaii are scarce, and competition is fierce. The cost of living there is very high. If you are trying to pay off a loan, CA might be a better choice.

Thank you. I was concerned that a Hawaii job might be hard to come by. Thanks for your advice, I'll search more in California.

Thanks, guys. I'll intensify my efforts and get back on the search for the right job and location. I appreciate your advice. Hope you guys are doing well.

LG2V wrote: I was wondering about developing more Comp Sci proficiency since its somewhat related to my major and I might be able to get a job involving Natural Language Processing or something of the like. Might this be a possibility?

Gaining Comp Sci experience is definitely a big plus. It's virtually everywhere in any industry nowadays. I'd suggest to talk to your career counselor first to come up with a plan and all the specifics..

Hi LgI was rejoice with your enthusiasm. I suggest that you look for just any job. ( for me any job is just another job ) It seems that you are already living like a monk so within 12 months you will be able to pay off your debts. For me the place where you live is not an important for the progress of your path. (Dhammawhell is my virtual temple ) Just be a leader, you could be the person who is going to do that change!

Meanwhile see whether you can adjust your life as follows.1. Restraint by the five precepts at least.2. Refraining from dancing, singing, listening to music, and watching entertainments. Restraining the senses and keeping the mind inwardly focused.3. Abstaining from all forms of wrong livelihood, and fulfilling completely all of one's duties to one's employer as described in the Sīgalovāda Sutta4. Making use of one's rightfully acquired wealth without vanity or sensual indulgence.

move to asia, teach english, take time off, travel, live in monasteries etc. that's what i do/will do for a while. there's always funded post-grad work.u could get an m.a. or something in ling (applied ling?) and teach in the universities in asia (and get more $)

Just keep breathing in and out like this. Don't be interested in anything else. It doesn't matter even if someone is standing on their head with their ass in the air. Don't pay it any attention. Just stay with the in-breath and the out-breath. Concentrate your awareness on the breath. Just keep doing it. http://www.ajahnchah.org/book/Just_Do_It_1_2.php

santa100 wrote:Gaining Comp Sci experience is definitely a big plus. It's virtually everywhere in any industry nowadays. I'd suggest to talk to your career counselor first to come up with a plan and all the specifics..

Thank you, I will talk with my career counselor and be certain to bring up a possible Comp Sci route.

SarathW wrote:Hi LgI was rejoice with your enthusiasm. I suggest that you look for just any job. ( for me any job is just another job ) It seems that you are already living like a monk so within 12 months you will be able to pay off your debts. For me the place where you live is not an important for the progress of your path. (Dhammawhell is my virtual temple ) Just be a leader, you could be the person who is going to do that change!

Meanwhile see whether you can adjust your life as follows.1. Restraint by the five precepts at least.2. Refraining from dancing, singing, listening to music, and watching entertainments. Restraining the senses and keeping the mind inwardly focused.3. Abstaining from all forms of wrong livelihood, and fulfilling completely all of one's duties to one's employer as described in the Sīgalovāda Sutta4. Making use of one's rightfully acquired wealth without vanity or sensual indulgence.

Thank you. I appreciate your post, and it has inspired me greatly. Yes, I will be certain to live my life in line with the principles you've outlined. I agree with them very much.

I'm amazed by the possibility that I could pay off my debts in such a short amount of time, given the right lifestyle. This is an enormous motivation, and with this in mind I may be able to put up with relative isolation from an in-person community for some time (I will always keep up with DW for the foreseeable future). Who knows what kinds of fruits may ripen in the future? I will be diligent and optimistic, and keep making merit.

convivium wrote:move to asia, teach english, take time off, travel, live in monasteries etc. that's what i do/will do for a while. there's always funded post-grad work.u could get an m.a. or something in ling (applied ling?) and teach in the universities in asia (and get more $)

That is a great idea. I will definitely take that into consideration and see how I can adjust it to my current needs and goals. Thank you for the response. This was inspiring, as well.

Thanks, guys. You guys' suggestions inspire me. I'm starting to feel as if I can realistically make this happen. I don't speak with other members of the community very often, so it feels great to get some feedback from others on the path, even on matters such as these.

my suggestion, first off, would be to do at least 2-4 weeks of retreat immediately after your graduate. you likely wont be able to get that much time off again during the first few years of work. do whatever you have to do to go on retreat... borrow money, skip a good job... it will be worth it.

my second suggestion, would be to consider moving to northern California. I moved here specifically because there was such a large spiritual community and it has far surpassed my expectations. I live in Sacramento, which is 1-3 hours from Abhayagiri, Spirit Rock, IMC and more lay meditation groups/centers than you could hope to practice with in a lifetime. It really is the 'central hub' for Theravada Dhamma in the Western world. If you move anywhere into the Sacramento Valley or Bay Area around San Francisco you'll be within driving distance.

This area also has urban and rural living areas that are quite moderately priced and a large enough population and economy that there are plenty of jobs. The weather here also makes it suitable to grow most of your own food easily, which allows for significant reduction in expenses.

Feel free to PM me anytime.

"It's easy for us to connect with what's wrong with us... and not so easy to feel into, or to allow us, to connect with what's right and what's good in us."

my suggestion, first off, would be to do at least 2-4 weeks of retreat immediately after your graduate. you likely wont be able to get that much time off again during the first few years of work. do whatever you have to do to go on retreat... borrow money, skip a good job... it will be worth it.

my second suggestion, would be to consider moving to northern California. I moved here specifically because there was such a large spiritual community and it has far surpassed my expectations. I live in Sacramento, which is 1-3 hours from Abhayagiri, Spirit Rock, IMC and more lay meditation groups/centers than you could hope to practice with in a lifetime. It really is the 'central hub' for Theravada Dhamma in the Western world. If you move anywhere into the Sacramento Valley or Bay Area around San Francisco you'll be within driving distance.

This area also has urban and rural living areas that are quite moderately priced and a large enough population and economy that there are plenty of jobs. The weather here also makes it suitable to grow most of your own food easily, which allows for significant reduction in expenses.

Feel free to PM me anytime.

marc108, thanks for your response.

I agree with your suggestion to do a retreat, for the reasons that you mentioned. Thanks for reminding me; I hadn't even seriously thought about it until you brought it up. I have built up a good amount of meditation practice over the year, but this would be my first retreat, so maybe something like 10 days or 2 weeks would be best. Off the top of my head, I think that The Bhavana Society might be a good place to visit.

The Sacramento area is pretty much exactly what I've had my sights on. Thanks for the reassurance. I'll send you a PM later asking about more things in detail. Thanks, I appreciate the advice.

Bhavana Society retreats fill up quickly and well ahead of time so plan accordingly. A lot of popular places like Abhayagiri are using a lottery system I believe. Also just FYI, Wat Metta in San Diego is basically a year round retreat center... you just need to call and make sure they have open space for when you plan to come and you can camp out in one of their tent spaces. http://watmetta.org/visitor.htm

"It's easy for us to connect with what's wrong with us... and not so easy to feel into, or to allow us, to connect with what's right and what's good in us."

Under development since the late1990s, the Purdue Research Parksare now home to nearly 200companies encompassing numerousindustries and fields of study,including biology , materials science,and information science, amongothers.

This kind park has something program "Sentient world simulation", and as you want know Snowden (wisthleblower of prism) ever work in here as guard in the complex.

Bhavana Society retreats fill up quickly and well ahead of time so plan accordingly. A lot of popular places like Abhayagiri are using a lottery system I believe. Also just FYI, Wat Metta in San Diego is basically a year round retreat center... you just need to call and make sure they have open space for when you plan to come and you can camp out in one of their tent spaces. http://watmetta.org/visitor.htm

Thanks for the info, Marc. I checked, and Bhavana Society doesn't seem to have any conveniently timed retreats at the moment. I'll look around in some other places and see if I can spend a short retreat at another site. This is something that I'd really like to do.

daimond wrote:How about indiana, there "Purdue reacher park"

Under development since the late1990s, the Purdue Research Parksare now home to nearly 200companies encompassing numerousindustries and fields of study,including biology , materials science,and information science, amongothers.

This kind park has something program "Sentient world simulation", and as you want know Snowden (wisthleblower of prism) ever work in here as guard in the complex.

I've done some research into NLP, I have a masters in comp sci... if you are interested in NLP it will involve a whole load of math. I highly recommend you have a look at coursera for a course on NLP by literally the people who have written the books on NLP.

iforgotmyname wrote:I've done some research into NLP, I have a masters in comp sci... if you are interested in NLP it will involve a whole load of math. I highly recommend you have a look at coursera for a course on NLP by literally the people who have written the books on NLP.

iforgotmyname,

Sorry for the late reply. Thanks for your advice. I've looked into working professionally with NLP over the last few weeks, and I agree with your assessment. It seems like I would need an advanced degree in computational linguistics or a stronger background in computer science in order to be a strong candidate for most of the available NLP-related positions. It doesn't seem like a feasible career path at the moment, but a course on NLP would definitely be fun to take. Perhaps I'll study it more during free time in the future.